Washboard

ABSTRACT

The device for washing clothes is portable and consists of upper and lower parts which are separated to put between them the fabric to be washed, after which they are brought together and reciprocated horizontally in opposite directions to effect washing. The abutting faces of the two parts are provided with angular grooves which are oppositely directed to provide added friction to the fabric being washed. In a preferred embodiment the upper member is provided with a container for detergent powder which is forced to the fabric being washed by pressure of the wash water.

[ 1 May 23, 1972 United States Patent Muniz 54] WASHBOARD FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS [72] Inventor: 53,070 7/1910 Switzerland...........................,

Eloy Fernando Muniz, Guayama Street No. 271, Hato Rey, PR. 00917 Oct. 12, 1970 Appl. No.: 79,755

Pn'mary Examiner-Walter A. Scheel Assistant Examiner-Philip R. Coe

22 Filed:

Attorney-Scrivener, Parker, Scrivener & Clarke ABSTRACT .68/224 [571 The device for washing clothes is portable and consists of 248/275; 68/3 40,41, upper and lower parts which are separated to put between them the fabric to be washed, after which they are brought together and reciprocated horizontally in opposite directions 223 229 to effect washing. The abutting faces of the two parts are pro- [51] Int. [58] FieldofSearch..,...........

vided with angular grooves which are oppositely directed to provide added friction to the fabric being washed, In a References Cited preferred embodiment the upper member is provided with a UNITED STATES PATENTS container for detergent powder which is forced to the fabric being washed by pressure of the wash water.

68/92 3 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures Harm 209,499 10/1878 Miller.... 1,563,015 11/1925 Christy PATENTEDMM 23 I972 INVENTOR E LOY FERNANDO MUNIZ WASHBOARD SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The washboard has two superposed flat members having oppositely directed grooves in the adjacent surfaces, between which fabric to be washed is placed and the upper member reciprocated with respect to the lower member. A container for detergent is mounted on the upper member and communicates with the space between the two members to receive wash water therefrom.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the two basic parts of the washboard provided by the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the parts shown in FIG. 1 in assembled washing positions;

FIG. 3 is an end view of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the upper member of a second and preferred embodiment of the invention, and

FIG. 5 is a partial side view of the second embodiment of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION By this invention I have provided a portable easily operated device for washing any fabric articles such as clothing and the like. The basic device provided by the invention is disclosed in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 and comprises two separate parts, an upper part 2 and a lower part 4, which are normally separated but are brought together with fabric between them in the washing operation. The lower member 4 is channel shaped, having bottom 6 and side walls 8, 10, the upper surface of the bottom being provided with grooves 12 which lie at an angle to the length of the bottom, and each of the side walls being provided with a plurality of openings 14. The invention also provides means for releasably holding together the upper and lower members during the washing operation, and such means comprise a plurality of ropes 16 which are connected at 17 at their lower ends to the inside surfaces of the side walls 8, adjacent the lower edges thereof, two being attached to wall 8 and two to wall 10 in the disclosed embodiment of the invention. Each rope is provided with spaced knots along its length. The upper member 2 of the washboard is provided at its opposite edges with a plurality of notches 20 each of which is sufficiently wide to receive and pass one of the ropes 16 but not the knots along the rope. The number of notches is the same as the number of ropes and they are correspondingly positioned. A handle 18 extends upwardly from the upper surface of the upper part 2 of the washboard. The lower surface of the upper member 2 is scored with grooves 22 which are positioned at an angle to the length of the two parts, and are directed oppositely to the grooves of the lower part 4. A strip 24 of wood or other material is attached to the lower surface of the bottom member 4 at one end thereof to cause the lower member to assume an inclined position when it rests on a flat surface.

In the use and operation of the basic form of the invention disclosed in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 the upper member 2 is lifted from the lower member 4 and the fabric to be washed is placed on the bottom 6 of the lower member after which the upper member is placed on the fabric and the top member placed on that. The parts are held in this condition by passing the knotted ropes 16 through the notches 20 in the upper member, and it will be observed that because of the provision of a number of knots along the length of each rope the parts may be held apart at a distance determined by the amount of fabric material between them. The parts are now immersed in the wash water or liquid and the upper member reciprocated along the lower member between and parallel to the side walls 8, 10. The wash liquid will enter and leave the washboard and the fabric therein through the ports 14, and the oppositely angled grooves 12, 22 will provide a scrubbing action to the fabric bein washed.

A secon and preferred embodiment of the invention is disclosed in FIGS. 4 and 5 and comprises the same basic parts as the washboard which has already been described, these being the upper part 2, lower part 4, grooves 12, 22, knotted ropes l6 and handle 18. In addition, in this embodiment the upper member 2 of the washboard is provided on its upper surface with a container 30 having a removable cover 32 and having an opening 34 at its bottom communicating with a vertical passage 36 in the upper member 2. The container also has an opening 38 in its side wall which communicates through a tube 40 with a second vertical opening 42 in the upper member 2 which is spaced longitudinally of the upper member from opening 34, 36.

In the use and operation of this embodiment of the invention detergent powder is put into the container 30, the cover 32 closed, and the washboard operated in the manner described above in connection with FIGS. 1, 2 and 3. As the upper member 2 is reciprocated and is forced downwardly on the lower member 4 and the fabric between them, wash water will be forced upwardly through one or both of the openings 34, 36 and 42, passing into the container so where it will mix with detergent and, upon relief of the downward pressure on the upper member 2, will flow downwardly through the openings 34, 36 and 42 onto the fabric being washed.

I claim 1. A portable washboard, comprising an elongated channel shaped lower part having a bottom and side walls, grooves in the upper surface of the bottom which are disposed angularly to the side walls, openings in the side walls to permit the flow of wash liquid, a fiat upper member which is shorter than the lower member and of such width as to permit easy sliding movement between the side walls of the lower member, a handle extending upwardly from the upper surface of the upper member, and grooves formed in the lower surface of the upper member and disposed angularly and oppositely to the grooves of the lower member.

2. A portable washboard according to claim 1, comprising in addition a plurality of ropes connected to one of the parts of the washboard, each of said ropes having a plurality of knots along its length and a plurality of open-ended notches in the other part of the washboard to receive the ropes.

3. A portable washboard according to claim 1, comprising in addition a container for detergent positioned on the upper surface of the upper member and communicating through its bottom with the space below the upper member, the container having an opening in its side, and a tube connecting the side opening with the space below the upper member at a point removed from the communication of the bottom of the container with the space below the upper member, whereby downward pressure exerted on the upper member during washing will force liquid into the container through its bottom and through the side opening and out of the container through the bottom as a liquid detergent when the downward pressure is released. 

1. A portable washboard, comprising an elongated channel shaped lower part having a bottom and side walls, grooves in the upper surface of the bottom which are disposed angularly to the side walls, openings in the side walls to permit the flow of wash liquid, a flat upper member which is shorter than the lower member and of such width as to permit easy sliding movement between the side walls of the lower member, a handle extending upwardly from the upper surface of the upper member, and grooves formed in the lower surface of the upper member and disposed angularly and oppositely to the grooves of the lower member.
 2. A portable washboard according to claim 1, comprising in addition a plurality of ropes connected to one of the parts of the washboard, each of said ropes having a plurality of knots along its length and a plurality of open-ended notches in the other part of the washboard to receive the ropes.
 3. A portable washboard according to claim 1, comprising in addition a container for detergent positioned on the upper surface of the upper member and communicating through its bottom with the space below the upper member, the container having an opening in its side, and a tube connecting the side opening with the space below the upper member at a point removed from the communication of the bottom of the container with the space below the upper member, whereby downward pressure exerted on the upper member during washing will force liquid into the container through its bottom and through the side opening and out of the container through the bottom as a liquid detergent when the downward pressure is released. 